


Safe harbour

by violetbear



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: M/M, Mental Breakdown
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2020-09-29 20:14:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20441861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/violetbear/pseuds/violetbear
Summary: After returning from Khi Tasia, Scott breaks down. Recieving an anonymous message in the night, Reyes rushes to his side.





	Safe harbour

How did he think he could do this? How had his father thought he could do this? None of his decisions had turned out the way they were supposed to. Even this latest one was a complete mess. Meridian was nowhere to be found. It was lost to them somewhere in the vastness of space. How could anyone find what someone didn’t want found? How could he? It was impossible. He had failed. He had failed his father. His sister. The whole Initiative.

“Pathfinder, please answer me.”  
He didn’t know how long SAM had been calling him. And he really didn’t care. All he felt was emptiness. Emptiness that threatened to swallow him whole. He was very tempted to let it.  
“Scott, please. Talk to me.”  
“Go away”, he sobbed into his pillow. “Leave me alone.”

It should have been Sara. It would have been Sara if fate had been just a tiny bit kinder. Sara was so much better than him. Better at everything. Why hadn’t it been his cryo pod that failed? Him in a coma for months. When he would have woken up, Sara would have every problem solved. Home found. The Archon defeated. Unlike him. He was a failure. He would never measure up to his father’s example. Addison was right. Tann was right. Cora was right. He couldn’t do this. He had failed.  
“Please, Scott. Answer-“ SAM’s voice faded away as he continued to sob into his pillow.

*************************************************************

Damn his omni-tool. Hadn’t he switched it to silent mode before he went to bed? He was sure of it. And yet it was beeping an alert at him. An annoying beep that just kept going and going and... That wasn’t right. He opened his eyes and sat up in bed, opening his omni-tool. No sender information. No point of origins. Only five simple words. Five words that made all the breathe leave his body. Scott needs you. Come immediately.

Something bad had happened. It had to have. He jumped out of bed and raced out the door, his heart beating fast. He had to get to him before he was too late. Please don’t let him be too late. He didn’t stop running until he reached his shuttle. He quickly powered it up and took off into the night. Last report had the Tempest near the Civki system. Hopefully they were still there.

An hour later he was docking with the Tempest. He barely gave the door time to open before he was stepping foot onto the bridge of the ship, ignoring whatever Kallo said to him. He didn’t need directions. He hadn’t visited Scott on his ship before but he had his descriptions and the blueprints he had downloaded after he started seeing Scott to guide him. He slid down the ladder and marched into the Pathfinders quarters. The sight before him finally making him stop.

Scott was curled up on his side, his back to him. His face was pressed into a pillow but it barely muffled the sounds of his sobs. Sobs that shook his whole body. Sobs that were unending. Sobs that were breaking his heart. His poor boy.

He rushed across the room and climbed onto the bed. Making soothing noises, he ran a hand down Scott’s back but Scott gave no indication that he was even aware he was there. What else could he do? How long had this been going on? He looked towards SAM’s router. Why hadn’t SAM done something? He couldn’t stand hearing Scott for much longer. He almost wanted to cry himself.

“Scott, please”, he murmured, hand still on his back. “I’m here, my love. Please answer me.”  
“He won’t”, SAM said. “He stopped answering me two hours ago. He’s shut me out.”  
“What happened?” Had the unthinkable happened? Had Sara died?  
“Please help him, Reyes. I don’t know what else to do. I’m very close to needing to call Lexi in here but I know Scott would prefer I didn’t. You are the next best option. Scott’s best hope. Please help him.”

He flipped Scott over, surprised how easy it was. Scott was totally limp except for his crushing grip on the pillow. It made picking him up and pressing Scott’s pillowed face to his chest all the more easier.  
“I’m here, Scott”, he soothed, kissing the top of his head. “Please stop crying. Please answer me, my love.” When he felt Scott’s grip on the pillow loosen, he pulled it away. Scott threw his arms around him, gripping him tight, his head buried in his shoulder. Reyes ran his hands up and down Scott’s bare back, continuing to whisper soothing words to him.

Finally Scott’s sobs slowed before silencing completely. He continued to hold him close, humming a melody he vaguely recalled from his childhood.  
“Reyes”, Scott whispered.  
“I’m here, Scott. I love you and I’m right here.”  
“Love you.”

Scott released him, wiping his eyes. His very red, puffy eyes.  
“Reyes, why are you here? How are you here?”  
“My love, what happened?” Something bad had to have happened. The boy sitting in front of him wasn’t his Scott. His always smiling, always seeming to be in control Scott. The boy sitting in front of him was broken. Completely emotionally broken. What had caused that? “What made you so sad?”  
“Finally realizing the truth.”  
“What truth?”

“I can’t do this. Dad was an idiot for making me Pathfinder. Cora should have... It should have been Sara. Sara would be so much better than me. I’m a failure. I can’t-“  
“Yes, you can”, he said, forcefully cutting him off. “You have. Scott, you are an amazing Pathfinder. An amazing person. How could you...” He trailed off as he realized what had made Scott think like he did. He kissed Scott’s forehead and brushed tears off his cheeks. “You didn’t find Meridian.”  
“We did but we didn’t. It’s complicated. I thought things were going my way for once. Turns out it was a failure. Another failure. All I’ve done since waking up is fail. Don’t know why I expected anything different.”  
“How can you say that? Look around you, baby. You have not failed.”

“Look around?” Scott released him and stood up, stalking to the center of the room before turning back to face him. “At this? Reyes, I’m standing here because I failed on that first mission. Standing here because my helmet broke so dad had to give me his. Pathfinder wasn’t supposed to be me. None of this was supposed to be mine.”  
“And I wasn’t supposed to end up exiled.” He walked over and joined Scott, grabbing his hands. “Assemble the Collective. Become the Charlatan.”  
“Reyes, I-“  
“Meet you.” He kissed Scott lightly on the lips. “Fall in love with you. Become king of Kadara. Which as you know makes you-“  
“Don’t. Not now. The truth is-“

“The truth is you have done so much in so little time. You have defied all the expectations the Initiative had of you. They put the weight of the entire Initiative on your shoulders expecting you to crumble but you didn’t. You’ve proven time and again you are the right man for the job.” He cupped Scott’s head in his hand, brushing off a stray tear with his thumb. Scott looked so young. So broken. How could they have expected one man to do it all? No. One boy. His boy. “I’m surprised you haven’t broken before now.”

“Yeah, well.” Scott reached up and reclaimed his hand, a small smile now on his lips. Reyes was very glad to see it. “I’m not exactly what you would call a normal human anymore. Not since Habitat 7.”  
“I call you mine. The rest is just noise. Come on.” He squeezed his hand. “Let’s get you into bed.”

Scott laughed. It was the most beautiful laugh he had ever heard from him.  
“Of course. The real reason you came all this way. To get your queen into bed.”  
“I won’t lie. That is usually the main objective anytime we’re together.”  
“Explains your choice of attire. Or lack thereof.”

He glanced down to see he was naked. Totally naked. He was wearing nothing but his omni-tool.  
“Actually this look is more I was woken up to an urgent message and ran out of the house. But I’m sure it can be adapted.”  
“Uh huh.”

They walked back to the bed. Reyes made sure Scott was covered up before slipping under the blanket himself.  
“There. In bed. Now go to sleep. You must be exhausted.”  
“I am. What message?”  
“What message what?”  
“You said you got an urgent message. From who?”  
“Anonymous.” But it was obvious to him who had sent it. He’d had a pretty good idea before he had even walked into Scott’s room. “Or should I say SAM. Thank you, by the way.”  
“You are welcome”, SAM said. “Thank you for getting here so quickly.”

“Part of me wants to feel betrayed”, Scott said, snuggling against him. “But mostly, I’m glad you came.”  
“Of course I did. You needed me. Scott, you have a tough job. The toughest in this galaxy. Anytime it gets to be too much, call me. I’ll come running. I’ll be your safe harbour.”  
“You already are.” Scott yawned and closed his eyes.  
He kissed his forehead before closing his own eyes, holding Scott tight.


End file.
